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Friday, January 31, 2014

Today was my last day at work. Hurrah! I'm half way through a bottle of malbec, my preferred red wine. I have some work to do tonight, but I'm kind of procrastinating. My minimal goal for tonight is to to get three boxes of books packed up and mailed out (tomorrow).

I think I'm making real progress on my move though. I have my electricity being shut off the day I leave Portland, my internet being shut off on the 4th (ugh), and....well I guess those are my two big bills. I'm in the middle of cleaning the bedroom and moving all big boxes to the living room (first room cleaned). Then it's on to the kitchen. Once I get that done, moving will be a cinch.

I should probably call my godfather, who is also doubling as my realtor. I need to see what I need to do to secure that house. One of my first thoughts when I looked at pictures of the house was that it needed some new siding because shit brown ain't my color, daddy-o. I haven't played around with many color combinations yet, but my first thought was to go with a light-medium grey siding and a bright trim.

Medium grey vinyl siding

Behr's Cool Lava for a trim color?

I kind of like the color combination. What do you think? I want it to say rockabilly, but not with over punctuation.

Sunday, January 26, 2014

I thought I'd let you all know that I have a pinterest board strictly for retro patterns. That means for women, men, craft patterns, etc. Right now I have 190 retro patterns pinned. Its a lot easier to browse through the pinterest board than to go through all kinds of catalogs and stuff.

Saturday, January 25, 2014

I am about ready for my move back up to Alaska. I have two shirts that need button holes - something that will get done today. I have a few things left to pack up - kitchen, bathroom, and some clothing. I also have to tear down my bookcases so I can transport them. That's pretty much it.

What this means is that I'm getting really bored really fast. Does anyone have any tips or questions or project suggestions or anything? If I stop my projects I know I'll break down over the split between me and my guy.

I'm planning on writing a book on rockabilly food and arts/crafts. Always looking for suggestions to add to the book. Anything you'd like to see? It won't be your usual book on food and arts/crafts.

Anyone in Fairbanks, Alaska - I'm looking for a fixer upper classic car (1935-1960, nothing newer). If you have something at a reasonable price, let me know. Also, looking to start up a rockabilly social club, think of it as a car club meets a food/drink/craft/social club. Let me know if you're interested.

Monday, January 20, 2014

OGI Eyewear has a swanky collection of retro eyewear called Seraphin. I have the Virginia style glasses. I get compliments daily on these glasses. If you're looking for a pair of retro glasses, whether you're a guy or gal, check this place out first.

I also want to talk about some magazines that I recently picked up.
1. Old House Journal. This one is a new one for me. It looked interesting. It has a lot of good information on early style houses, more like arts and crafts rather than midcentury. Still, its a good magazine to check out.

2. Make It Vintage. Not a fan of this magazine. I picked it up for the first time a week ago and thought "ah, new projects", but it just has dumb stuff in it. On top of that, it pretty much keeps repeating itself with ideas. Stencil this...and that...and that...and that....now lets moveinto the decoupage...you get the picture. I just felt like I wasted my money when pinterest is totally free.

3. Atomic Ranch. This magazine is pretty awesome. There are a lot of great sources for finding midcentury and retro stuff.

4. Dwell. I have loved this magazine for years now. It has a lot of modern and post-modern stuff, but there are always cool new ideas and sources.

Sunday, January 19, 2014

Well, I've been keeping busy with projects and packing for my upcoming move - I'm a little afraid that if I stop then I'll have to deal with my heartbreak. As it happens I have a picture of my latest project, which is still in progress.

I'm embroidering some pin-up girls onto dish towels, along with some other things like cherries.

I'm thinking about writing a book on Rockabilly food, arts, and crafts. Some things are girly, some things are more manly, and some things can be done with kids.

Damn. Is that really the time? I hate it when you finally look at the clock and realize that it's way later than you thought. At least my house is clean, my dishes are washed, and my pin-up is pretty much finished. I guess its a good time to start on getting those patterns cut out. On pinterest, by the way, I started posting pictures of some of the stuff I've made. Up next are two shirts from Simplicity 1590 (one's floral, one's plaid) and high waisted shorts based on Butterick 5895 (I hope they don't suck balls once I'm through).

Monday, January 6, 2014

I go to the gym on a five day rotation - weights, cardio, weights, cardio, day off, repeat. I don't like taking a whole lot with me, but when it comes to taking a shower post-workout, I do need a few things like soap. This is my homemade rag and soap pocket...aka A Scrubber!

I took an old washcloth and measure it, marked it. I used a highlighter so the markings would go away when washed.

Double checking to make sure my markings matched up.

I drew out a swallow, realized it was too high up, and redrew it in blue highlighter. If you aren't good at this, I suggest getting an embroidery pattern from Sublime Stitching. They have monsters, girls, guys, cute stuff, robots, etc. Carried at JoAnn Fabrics.

A bunch of embroidery floss.

My somewhat crappy swallow. I didn't realize how open the weave was on the well-worn washcloth.

Cut the washcloth on my marked lines, folded one end over for a big hem, the other fold is for securing the scrubber closed.

Sewed around the perimeter to make a bag.

Sewed in a button hole and stitched in a button.

Put my gym soap inside. See my sudsy ziploc bag? That's what I usually use to hold my soap.

Its about the size of my hand. I thought it would be helpful to see how big it was.

I wanted to make a quick addition to this post. If you're going to do this, be sure to air dry your scrubber after the gym and be sure to wash it every couple of days to prevent bacteria.

While this blog is focused around a gothabilly/50s perspective of life, I should let you all know that I like to go hiking and fishing, I like to have mini-adventures (real ones are far and few), I like to make food, I like art and movies, I like to workout, and so much more.